Newly Retired and Looking for Something? Croquet Is Easier to Start Than You Think

Retirement comes with a long list of things to do. Most of them sound better in theory than they feel on a Tuesday morning. The time you wanted for forty years finally arrives, and so does a quieter question. What do you actually do with it now?

A lot of people are surprised by what they miss. They miss the shape work gave the week. They miss the company of the people who knew their name when they walked in.

Croquet gives both of those back, and it asks very little of you to start.

First, it puts a rhythm in the week. Most clubs play on set days, so there is somewhere to be and a reason to get up and out. You are not filling time alone at home. You turn up, you are paired with others, and within a visit or two you are a name rather than a face. It is a club sport in the old sense, where the cuppa afterwards matters as much as the result.

It is also a game with real depth, which is why people stay. You do not exhaust it in a month. A good player keeps improving for years, reading the lawn, setting up shots, learning when the gentle tap beats the big hit. That kind of game holds you long after the novelty wears off.

None of this asks much of the body. Croquet is played at a walking pace on grass, with no running and no jarring about. You line up your shot and play it. An afternoon still gets you outdoors and moving for a couple of hours. Your knees will not have an opinion about it the next day.

You do not need to be sporty, and you do not need to have played anything before. Plenty of people arrive having never held a mallet.

There are two versions to find your feet in. Golf Croquet is quick to learn and the one most newcomers start with. It is a contest of position and timing you can enjoy from your very first hit. Association Croquet is the deep, strategic game that people call chess on grass, for when you want something to sink your teeth into. Most players dabble in both.

Starting is easier than people expect. Clubs hand you a mallet and balls, so there is nothing to buy. The cost to join is low by the standard of any sport. A Come and Try session lets you test the whole thing for an hour, so you try it all before you commit a single dollar.

Clubs sit across Brisbane, the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Toowoomba and plenty of regional towns, so the odds are good that one is near you.

Retirement hands you the time. Croquet gives you somewhere to spend it, and a game you will still be getting better at in twenty years.

Find your nearest club and book a free Come and Try session at comeandtrycroquet.com, or browse Queensland clubs at clubhub.croquetqld.org. Bring nothing but a pair of flat shoes.